Granted Patent B1

US 8,109,396 · App. 11/278,185 · Granted Feb 7, 2012

Abstract

Claims (32)

1. A bi-injected easy grip closure for a container made of a first material, comprising:

a top wall with depending side wall;

said side wall having an exterior surface partitioned into a gripping surface and a slide ring, said gripping surface recessed within said side wall relative to said slide ring and receiving a second material, said second material bi-injected into said gripping surface after formation of said gripping surface, said second material being softer than said first material;

said slide ring being annular about said closure such that the outer diameter of said slide ring is greater than the outermost periphery of said gripping surface with said second material;

said top wall having an exterior surface partitioned into a top surface slide rail of said first material and a gripping top surface of said second material, said gripping top surface recessed within said top wall relative to said top surface slide rail and receiving said second material, said second material bi-injected into said gripping top surface after formation of said gripping top surface;

whereby said top surface slide rail of said first material projects vertically beyond the uppermost extent of said gripping top surface of said second material.

2. The bi-injected easy grip closure of claim 1 wherein said gripping surface is interposed with a plurality of vertical ribs extending about said depending side wall and made of said first material.

3. The bi-injected easy grip closure of claim 1 wherein said gripping surface is a continuous gripping surface.

4. The bi-injected easy grip closure of claim 1 wherein said top surface slide rail is an annular ring.

5. The bi-injected easy grip closure of claim 1 wherein said slide ring is a continuous annular surface of said first material.

6. The bi-injected easy grip closure of claim 5 wherein said slide ring is positioned adjacent a lower edge of said side wall and extends upwards toward said top wall.

7. The bi-injected easy grip closure of claim 1 wherein said first material has a relatively higher empirical hardness compared to said second material.

8. The bi-injected easy grip closure of claim 7 wherein said first material is polypropylene and said second material is a thermoplastic elastomer.

9. A bi-injected easy grip closure made of a first material and having a gripping surface made of a second material, comprising:

an annular top wall with a depending side wall;

said depending side wall having an annular slide ring circumferentially extending about said side wall, and also having a first recessed area inset from said slide ring made of said first material;

said annular top wall having a top surface annular slide ring, and also having a second recessed area inset from said top surface annular slide ring made of said first material;

said first and second recessed areas filled with said second material to form a gripping surface, said gripping surface having an outermost diameter and an uppermost vertical periphery, wherein said outermost diameter of said gripping surface of said second material is less than an outer diameter of said slide ring of said depending side wall and said uppermost vertical periphery of said gripping surface of said second material is less than the vertical extent of said top surface annular slide ring of said annular top wall;

said gripping surface of said second material is directly adjacent said top surface annular slide ring of said first material; and

wherein said second material has a relatively lower empirical hardness compared to said first material.

10. The bi-injected closure of claim 9 wherein said annular slide ring is a continuous annular surface about said depending side wall.

11. The bi-injected closure of claim 9 wherein said annular slide ring is discontinuous about said depending side wall.

12. The bi-injected closure of claim 9 wherein said annular slide ring is adjacent a lower edge of said side wall, said first recessed area positioned above said slide ring, said gripping surface of said second material extending upwards towards said top wall.

13. The bi-injected closure of claim 12 wherein said gripping surface is continuous about said depending side wall.

14. The bi-injected closure of claim 12 wherein said top surface annular slide ring is continuous.

15. The bi-injected closure of claim 12 wherein said gripping surface has vertical ribs extending about said depending side wall and interposed between a plurality of gripping surfaces formed with said second material.

16. A bi-injected easy grip closure formed with an underlying first material and an overlaid bi-injected high frictional second material, comprising:

a first material including a top wall with a depending side wall;

said top wall having an upwardly projecting slide rail;

a frictional second material overlaying a portion of said first material top wall forming a gripping surface, said upwardly projecting slide rail of said first material vertically extends beyond an uppermost extent of said gripping surface of said second material that overlays said portion of said first material top wall.

17. The bi-injected easy grip closure of claim 16 wherein said gripping surface is defined by a periphery of said upwardly projecting slide rail of said first material.

18. The bi-injected easy grip closure of claim 16 wherein said side wall of said first material further including a lower slide ring, said gripping surface overlays said side wall and an outermost periphery of said second material gripping surface that overlays said sidewall is less than an outer diameter of said first material lower slide ring.

Assignments (38)